I am so tired tonight. I guess I am still recovering from my cold and at the same time trying to do too much. And having the house is such disorder from ripping out the kitchen…. well I think it is safe to say we will not do another kitchen renovation in my lifetime.

Last night David and his helper worked till 4 am to get the drywall up so that the guy who is mudding it could start today. They did it and he has started it tonight.

Things are moving along. I can’t say that I like washing dishes in the bathtub, but at least we have hot water. I’m trying to look for some positives here. Mostly I’m just exhausted at all the extra work it is to live in a house that is in disorder.

Today I made a trip down to Saskatoon to finalize my choice in countertops. We are going with concrete from Sand and Stone by Rempel. I chose a dark colour – Ebony. The edges will have exposed agregate so that will pick up the colours from the floor and the cabinets. The island will show the agregate and we have added some amber colored glass to pick up the light. Thle guy that does this says that the glass particles add some sparkle and depth to the surface. It will look pretty great I think. It will resemble granite a lot but has some advantages over it. For one thing, it resists heat very well so hot pots placed on the surface will not harm it. Just can’t cut directly on it. A bit cheaper than granite and a lot more custom made as far as the colours and the choices of agregate additions. I think it will really suit our house.

Then I went and ordered and paid for our floor tile. Visited a couple of lighting stores and ended up with the lights I wanted from Home Depot for a very reasonable price. Sinks are ordered. Just have to get paint and pick up an over the stove microwave. Still have to choose what to use for the backsplash – maybe an amber tinted glass, maybe clear, maybe glass tile or something.

So much work.

And meanwhile, back here in PA. a new life is welcomed to the world over at the Vandersluys’ – Olivia Kate. Can’t wait to see her. Check out the details over at Marc’s blog.

This week I have been recovering from the conference weekend. I knew that I was exhausted at the end of it. Exhausted enough to make me vulnerable to a nasty virus that has made me feel pretty miserable with a cold. In fact as far as I can remember, this is one of the worst colds I’ve had in ages.

Oh, yeah, I kept right on working. This week I have been grateful to those patients who have not shown up for their appointments, giving me fairly light days for the past three.

Now my nose is red and sore but at least I can breathe again. Last night I slept well for the first time all week.

We had, as part of our annual conference, a display of art – both paintings and photographs – done by the members of the congregation. Art can cause in us a sense of worship and wonder. In his image, we are called to create even though the beauty we create is small in comparison. Art that I really connect with, and it does not have to be “religious” art at all, brings me onto the presence of God

One of the things I learned this weekend during the conference — sometimes I need to just serve. I do not have to pack my head full of the latest information. What I need to hear, God will make sure I hear. I just need to be ready to listen.

So this weekend, I missed most of the meetings. But I heard the real story about the escape from the fighting in the Congo by my friend Dr. Roger. I needed to hear that.

I heard stories of people I got a chance to listen to. I made some new friends. Some of the friends I made were under five years old. They gave out the best hugs.

I also learned that doing a conference like this is a lot of work. More than I thought. But it was good work and when a good job is done and you are given compliments, it feels good. Exhausting but good. That was the weekend.

And for the past few days I have been busy with my part in what has been a great Covenant Annual Meeting. My part has been to organize and see that childcare happens. For the most part it has and has gone well thanks to all the volunteers I had help from. Today was long though.

Tonight we had a great banquet and final concert put on by the students of Covenant Bible College.

We were up at the Art Hauser Centre in a room off the main room where we had our banquet and the kids seemed to have a good time. I borrowed the toys from the waiting room at my office. The slide was a big hit and it is amazing what entertainment kids can get from a few blocks.

We did have to close the door to the room though. Blocks make a huge amount of noise when they go crashing to the ground.

Anyway, here I am listening to some smooth jazz at the Cafe Randall. It is late and I should go home to bed but I like the music.